What kind of leaders does Indonesia want?

When it comes to selecting leaders for Indonesia, a new public academy has sparked debate. Former foreign academic and reporter, speaking as an expert, expressed concern over President Prabowo Subianto's announcement of a brand-new institution, Universitas Republik Indonesia (URI), on July 22. This institution aims to cultivate the country's future leaders for government and state-owned enterprises, with 10 campuses planned, starting with one in Bogor, West Java.

However, the reporter argues that this solution is expensive and unnecessary. Indonesia already has universities like the University of Indonesia, Gadjah Mada University, and the Bandung Institute of Technology that have been producing serious national leaders for decades. Yet, these universities are currently struggling with low research output and inadequate spending on research and development.

According to M. Zainuddin, a former rector of State Islamic University (UIN) Malang, Indonesia's research output is only 395 researchers per million people, compared to 4,000-8,000 in advanced economies. Research and development spending remains stuck near 0.2-0.3 percent of gross domestic product.

The reporter contends that the answer to better leadership lies in strengthening the existing solid universities in Indonesia, rather than building a parallel system from scratch. The money should be directed towards closing the gap in research and development output, rather than adding a new university that will burden the state budget.